SAI yet to approve Vijender Singh's leave

Patiala: Star boxer Vijender Singh, who is being investigated in a sensational drug haul case, is on leave from the NIS but his application for an extension is yet to be approved by the Sports Authority of India.

The SAI is yet approve the leave of Vijender, whose name emerged after the unearthing of heroin worth Rs 130 Crore from Fatehgarh Sahib at alleged drug peddler Anoop Singh Kahlon's flat in Zirakpur last month.

Sources at National Institute of Sports (NIS) disclosed that Vijender has been marked absent from the national camp and his leave has been forwarded to SAI's Delhi office as the most recent extension ended last Thursday.

Vijender has been on leave since the first week of March and has not attended the camp for a day.

Vijender has been on leave since the first week of March and has not attended the camp for a day. The boxer has so far extended his leave three times through NIS authorities, but the authorities have refused to entertain his fourth application for leave which landed here on Saturday.

Vijender had requested for a leave of two more weeks from NIS authorities, but they have forwarded the application to SAI Delhi, sources said. Meanwhile, the president of The Indian Amateur Boxing Federation (IABF), Abhishek Matoria on Wednesday said no decision has been taken to suspend Vijender from national camp.

Talking to PTI over phone Matoria said the Olympic and World Championships bronze-medallist should provide the samples as and when required by NADA. Matoria, however, hoped that his leave would be approved by SAI.

Asked about the Punjab police's move to take blood and hair samples of Vijender Singh, Matoria said since the Punjab police did not have any laboratory to test the samples, only NADA, which is an accredited agency, can test the samples.

The name of Vijender, who won the middleweight bronze at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, cropped up in the scandal when Fatehgarh Sahib Police exposed a drug haul case and took his sparring partner Ram Singh, later on dismissed by the Punjab Police, in custody for interrogation.

Ram allegedly told the investigators that he and Vijender consumed heroin supplied by Kahlon many times. Vijender has been denying the allegations of police, but police on Sunday evening claimed that they had evidence to prove that Vijender had taken heroin on 12 occasions.

The sports ministry had asked NADA to conduct a test on Vijender to conclude whether he consumed heroin or not. NADA has refused to conduct any heroin tests citing World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) protocol.